Techland’s Dying Light: The Beast launches September 19, 2025, across consoles and PC. Ahead of release, the studio has unveiled fresh gameplay footage and development insights through a new dev blog, revealing visual updates to protagonist Kyle Crane and gameplay mechanics.

Central to the blog is Kyle’s physical redesign after a decade of imprisonment. The team focused on conveying his trauma through visible details in first-person perspective, notably his hands. Artists incorporated scars and injuries from torture, while transforming veins into darkened markers during Beast Mode activations to symbolize his hybrid nature.

Techland emphasized dual combat identities: “Outside Beast Mode, Kyle retains precision from previous games. When transformed, animations shift to emphasize raw power—unpredictable swings and exaggerated movements contrast his usual efficiency. Lead artist Charidimos Bitsakakis’ team redesigned visual cues like knuckle textures and finger proportions to reflect this duality.”

New parkour animations aim to balance familiarity with innovation. Developers retained signature moves from earlier titles while introducing momentum-based maneuvers during transformations. Environment interactions—like altered wall-run physics in Beast Mode—were adjusted to reinforce narrative themes of lost control.

Early previews, including Wccftech’s hands-on session, noted the visceral impact of Kyle’s mutations. Journalists described Beast Mode as a “high-risk power fantasy” after experiencing the initial demo’s chaotic combat scenarios.